LOS ANGELES – The reunion normally triggered nostalgia both for his affection for the Lakers and Kobe Bryant.

This time, Pau Gasol’s return will be different. When the Lakers (7-5) play host to the San Antonio Spurs (9-3) on Friday at Staples Center, neither Bryant nor Tim Duncan will be there after competing against each other endlessly through 19 years. Gasol, who left the Lakers via free agency to Chicago in 2014, signed with the Spurs this summer and is farther ...

Less than 12 hours before he was to make his official debut as the Lakers' coach, Luke Walton said he was still deliberating with his coaching staff over his starting lineup for Wednesday night's season opener against the Houston Rockets at Staples Center.

"We’re still in debates over there. We’ll have one though," Walton said with a dose of humor following the morning shootaround at the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo. "We’re going to put names into a hat and ...

EL SEGUNDO – His presence represented the main consolation prize the Lakers received for finishing last season with the worst record in franchise history. His work ethic, versatility and wingspan could all play a large part in bolstering the Lakers’ otherwise non-existent defense in recent years. With the Lakers no longer featuring a star who dominated the scoring column and the limelight, his arrival could represent the Lakers’ new face in their franchise.

As the players all huddled together, Lakers coach Luke Walton and General Manager Mitch Kupchak addressed the team with a specific message. It went beyond any expected platitudes surrounding the 2016-17 season. It also surrounded the wave of various national anthem protests spearheaded by various NFL teams, which Walton called “a very serious and important issue.”

“It’s a very big subject because it’s touchy for both sides. But to me, it’s about what kind of change can we make,” Walton said. ...

A pair of former local college stars will join the Lakers in training camp.

Former UCLA forward Travis Wear and former USC guard Julian Jacobs will join the Lakers when they open the season on Sept. 27 at training camp in Santa Barbara.

Wear, who attended Mater Dei High, played at UCLA from 2011-14 and last appeared in the NBA as a rookie with the New York Knicks in the 2014-15 season, averaging 3.9 points and 2.1 rebounds in 51 games. He ...

Both intrigue and uncertainty await on how long it will take for the Lakers’ young roster to develop. Or how long it will take for Luke Walton to master his position as the Lakers’ new head coach.

At least the Lakers have clarity on who they will play and when during the 2016-17 season. The Lakers learned a few things when the NBA announced its schedule for the 2016-17 campaign on Thursday, developments that could provide both rich storylines and landmarks ...

EL SEGUNDO – Nearly everyone else around Southern California latches onto a diet that could make them look more presentable at the beach. But Duke forward Brandon Ingram dined with the Lakers coaching staff on Wednesday night doing something most only wished they could do.

“Just eat everything I can,” Ingram said. “I think at my weight, I can eat anything. I don’t have a certain diet.”

Ingram worked out with the Lakers in a private session on Thursday and is considered ...

Fewer than 48 hours after Kobe Bryant had authored one of the most graceful and fitting exits basketball had ever seen, Byron Scott sat in front of the Lakers logo he loves so much and faced questions about his own future with the franchise.

“I haven’t made any bones about it,” Scott said on April 15, “this is where I want to be.”

He reiterated that coaching the Lakers, the team with which he won three championships as a player, was his ...